Shores shoppers hope new Walmart will draw more stores

Wednesday

Jul 17, 2013 at 9:56 AM

Roughly 800 shoppers, dignitaries and employees turned out early this morning for the opening of the new Walmart in Silver Springs Shores.

By Tom McNiffManaging editor

Roughly 800 shoppers, dignitaries and employees turned out early this morning for the opening of the new Walmart in Silver Springs Shores, many snapping photos and recording video of the event in a scene that was oddly exultant for the launch of a retail store.There was a reason, and it wasn't just about the convenience of finally having the retail giant in their midst.Many shoppers who showed up before daybreak, hours ahead of the scheduled 7:30 opening, chattered excitedly with total strangers about their hopes that the 181,000-square-foot store will become a magnet for more retailers, the way it has on East Silver Springs Boulevard in east Ocala and on Southwest 19th Avenue Road in west Ocala.“It is just nice to see this kind of progression, because when Walmarts come in, other stores come in around them,” said T.J. Seidita, a collector of Hot Wheels cars who arrived about 6:30 in hopes of spotting some hard-to-find models in the store's untouched inventory.Kevin Sheilley, the CEO of the Ocala/Marion County Chamber and Economic Partnership, agreed.While some economists refer to Walmart as a “category killer” because its variety and low prices often force mom-and-pop competitors to fold, Sheilley noted that Walmarts generally stimulate economic activity wherever they appear.“It's similar to a mall, where you have your anchors and the other stores fill in around them,” Sheilley said. “Walmart is an anchor in itself, and other stores feed off of it.”That has largely been true in Marion County. The business district around Silver Springs attraction, for example, was foundering in the 1980s and 1990s before Walmart came along. After Walmart opened, Six Gun Plaza, which had stood virtually empty for years, filled up with shops and eateries, and a number of other major retailers like Lowe's home improvement store quickly took an interest in the area.“The difference here,” Sheilley said, motioning to the Publix shopping center across the street, “is that you already have some good retail here.”